Method of manufacturing bracing



SePt- 3, 1963 R. J. HUTcHlNsoN 3,102,306

METHOD oF MANUFACTURING BRACING Filed Aug. 2v, 195s Robert 1. Huthinson, Minneapolis, MinnA assigner t Herman Q. Mclhccters Filed' Aug. 27,1959, Ser.A No. 836,356

Ilhis invention 4relates to adjustable cross bracing or bridging such a'sfthat employed in bracing oor joistsand the like, Iand particularly to telescoping toggle type brac- United States Patent ,OF

v ing in which a pair of separable bracing members adr justably cooperate to -span the distance between a pair l of joists tofprovide-a rigid bracing unittherebetwee'n.

V"Although thisy invention is general applicable A'to all types of cross bracing employing separable cooperating` bracing members, it constitutes vprimarily an improvement in the cross bracing as an article of manufacture and the method of making same as set forth in my joint copending` application, Serial VNumber 558,047, led` January 9,' 1956, now `Patent No. 3,077,009,` issued Febnua-ry 12, '1963.` n

The cross bracing of the aforementioned application and of which this invention constitutes an improvement briefly consists ofa pair of separable male and female members bavingwood penetrating and gripping means provided at theends thereof, sai-d male member being provided at one end thereof with an outwardly extend-A i-ng tang or tab, `said female memberhaving a plurality of recesses or apertures intermediate the ends thereof for adjustably" receiving said tang or tab, and said members having cooperating means for locking said members in telescoped condition t'o provide asingle rigid bracing I-n the courseof the manufacture, distribution and use of said bracing umts a serious problem has arise insofar as the `packaging of the separable bracing members is concerned as well'as a'proble'm of lmaintaining equal numbers of male and'female membersava-ilable and 'at hand band when the braces are to be installed.4 Thus, in the previous practice vof packaging these male and female members, `since the male and female members have in the past been formed as separate ununited lmembers, it Ifrequently occurs that `in the packaging and shipmentofl these separate male andyfemale members dissimilar or` unequal numbers of one or the other are packaged and shipped which results in the user being supplied with too many male and vfemale members. Even where' equal numbers of`the male Fand lfemale members are shipped to the userQ-it frequently happens that the parties installing the bracing will inadvertently taketoo many of one of `the members and not enough of the others so that when he reaches Vthe job and beings installation he finds that `formed as uasi-ngle integral unit for ease i-n packaging 3,102,306 Patented. .Seatd? ice Still another object is an improvedmethod for mak- .ing the -cr-oss bracin'gunits ofthe class described "which l A l effects a substantial `saving and reductionin 'the cost `othereof. l

sameor similarparts throughout gthescverai' views', "and l FIG. l is an' elevational View of -thebracing ofthe l l instant invention utilized `for' ythecrossbracing "of two Y 'A adjacent joists, the joists being shown 'in vertical section,

understanding; VFIG. 2,A is a' perspective Iview of the article of manufacture of my invention illustrating the male and female members in disconnectible integrally united condition; M

FIG. 3 is a cross sectional vieiw taken ont-he 'line'S-Sf of FIG. 1';

FIG. 4 lis a cross sectional of, FIG. f1; and

FIGS. 5 and 6 illustrate the article of manufacture of this invention at intermediate stagesV inthe"`form'atio thereof i p Referring to thedrawings for -a detailed description of the preferred embodiment of my invention illustratedv therein, eaohbracing unit comprises an elongate .female member 10 which ycooperatively receives: and Yengages an elongate male member 1 1,`both members 10 and 11 f having ageiierally channel shaped cross-section. The female member is provided at its outer endfwith A vist/faken ,011 thelist.

apair of outwardly ext-ending spurs'or prongs '.12` exu tending outwardly from the'upper corner portionstherebf i L2 and 13 to engage and grip the'joists I when the`c`ro'ss" bracing of'this'finvention is'angularly disposed 4witlrrespect thereto as V shown iu FIG. l, which/'is the` preferred manner o f installation of thiisltype of cross-bracing." The top or center portion ofthe fernaie'merrber 10"'is provided with a plurality or series 'of longitudinally pref-fer'ably equi-spaced transversely extending laperft-tiresV or' slots 15 the outermost slot being .disposed adjacent the outcr end thereof. Semi-circular depressions ld are formed the top `surface 14 adjacent Vtoai'd contiglious fwith each of the slots 151`on`the side` thereof facing the A 'outer end" carrying thespursl'l and 13',` said depressions he is unable to complete the same because he has a ,i disproportionate number of male or female members.

and location thereof,A which unit is readilydi-sconnected at the point of installation to enable the separate members tofunction and cooperate inthe manner for which they were jdesigned.

A more vspecific objectmis abracing unit ofthe class described wherein the tang .or tab carried by the male member is -disconnectibly united to .the female mernber and is suitably scored at the point of connection there- 'with to permitready disconnectionitherefromby spinipple` relative movement-therebetween. A. l

lr6 providing a seat or ledge disposed slightly below"th'ef'` top 'surface 14l of the female member 10f providing"V 'a ledge or seatinglsurface and a leading abutment edge for engaging the tab` or rtang of the :here` t" inafter to be described.V A

v"On e-ach ofthe sides of thefemale member 10 adjacent` the innermend thereof and disposed slightlyabovetlie t llower marginal edge ftheref. is'an elng'ateinwrdly mechanism for` retaining the male and female "members" length of ,said fernhalememberf' adiacenti:r the lijst/ er 'marginal edge herepf and terminatesA just` short "of theA del"r tents 17, saidernbo'ssed `and inwardly as best. seen in The elongate male member 11 basa4 cross-section generally similar to that of ithejfemale .me slightly` Smaller .inslag to rermitsaid "m,

with portions: of the-bracing '.bmkeiaway `m1- Clamy `of f I to be received by and snugly fitted within the female member 'Ihe outer end of the male member 11'is provided with a pair of outwardly extending spurs 19 which extend outwardly from the top or upper corners thereof and is also provided with a pair of spurs 2G extending outwardly from the bottom corners thereof, the lower spurs -20 in this case being longer than the top spurs V19 to permit engagement of both spurs 19 and ZG with the joists I when disposed at an angle thereto as in FIG. 1. The top surface or center portion 21 of the male member 11 is provided with an elongate depressed portion 22 which extends substantially the full length of the male member 11 and substantially the full width thereof and is sufficiently deep to receive the depressed portion 16 of the female member 10 when the members 10 and 11 are in locked telescoped relationship.

The inner end of the male member 11 is provided with an outwardly extending oset tang or tab member 23 which tab or tang 23 is integrally united to the top surface 21. The tang 23 is offset upwardly from the top surface 21 by an amount substantially equal to the extent of depression of the semi-circular depressions 16 provided in the female member 10.

Each side of the male member is provided with a narrow elongate rod-like embossed portion 2.4 which extends substantially the full length of the member and provides a portion of the locking mechanism for maintaining |the male and female members in telescoped locked condition, said embossed portion y24 being adapted to co-act and cooperate with the detents 17 provided on the female member 10. The detents 17 and embossed portions 24 are so disposed with respect to the top and bottom edges of their respective members that when the members are in locked telescoped condition as in FIG. 1 the embossed portion 24 will be disposed above the detents 17 and in cooperative engagement therewith to prevent relative vertical movement between the members 10' and 11 and are preferably so arranged with respect to each other that substantially no play between the members 10 and 11 can occur.

In operation and use, the male and female members are disposed as indicated by the dotted positions of IFIG. 1, the outer spurred end of the female member engaging one of the joists and the outer end of the male member engaging the adjacent opposite joist. As shown in the initial relative positions of the members 10y and 11 they are disposed angularly to one another, the tang 23 being inserted in one of the slots .15 from the inside thereof with the female member generally overlying and disposed outwardly of the male member. Thus, the engagement of the tang 23 with the depressed portion `|16 adjacent the slot provides a pivot point or fulcrum for the relative toggle like bracing locking movement of the members 10 and 11. After the members have been positioned as shown by the dotted lines of FIG. 1 and the tang 23 `is inserted in the slot 15 to engage the depression 16, a slight downward pressure is applied to the female member which causes the lower marginal edges thereof defined by the embossed portions 18 to yield slightly and extend outwardly slightly to pass over the inner end of the rod-like embossed portion 24 of the male member in contiguous relation therewith to assume a nearly aligned position with the detent 17 of the female member assuming a position immediately above and adjacent to the rod-like embossed portion 24. Upon further application of downward pressure against the female member against the inner end thereof preferably as by grasping of the two members in the hand a further compressive pressure of somewhat greater degree than that initially required to pass the relief portions 18 over the rod-like portion 24 is applied which causes the detents 17 to pass over the rod-like embossed portion 24 and to be disposed immediately therebelow and in cooperative engagement therewith to positively lock the two members together and prevent relative movement therebetween. Thus, the drawing of the male and female members together to form a single bracing unit in locked condition corresponds to a toggle-like locking action with the movement of the two members being pivotal about the fulcrum provided by the engagement of the tang 23 with the semi-circular depressed portions 16. Thus, any inwardly directed force on the joists will tend to more positively retain the members 10 and 11 in locked position, the bracing uni-t preventing any actual movement of the joists inwardly, the arrangement being such that it is impossible to effect an unlocking or breaking of the locked condition of the male and female members by the application of an inward force against the joists.

It should also be noted at this point that the length of the members 116 and 11 and the disposition and spacing of the slots 1S is such that the bracing unit is adjustable and adaptable to the conventional spacing between the joists, said joists normally being installed on what is termed even numbered centers such as 12, 14, 16, 18 inch centers, etc.

As previously noted, it is highly desirable to have the male and female members comprising each bracing unit to be integrally united as an article of manufacture yet readily disconneotible at the point of installation for convenience in packaging and shipping and to insure that a complete unit is always available. To accomplish this, I have devised a new method of manufacture of said bracing unit and therewith a new article of manufacture which is best illustrated in FIG.' 2. In the new article of manufacture as illustrated in FIG. 2 the male `and female members areindividually constructed as previously described and as set forth in my co-pending application and are adapted to function in the same manner and to cooperate with one another in the same manner as previously above described. However, in the new article of manufacture the maie and female members comprising each bracing unit are integrally united by means of tang or tab member 23. The integrally united male and female members as shown in FIG. 2 are preferably made from a single sheet of fiat steel and are formed in a manner hereinafter to be described. The point of connection between the outer end of the tang 23 and the inner end of the female member 10 is suitably scored o-r perforated as at 25 to permit ready disconnection therebetween by simply bending or twisting the members relative to one another, which bending or twisting quickly and readily effects such a disconnection by breaking the join therebetween along the scored portion in a manner well known.

The intermediate steps of the method of forming the article of manufacture which comprises this invention is sequentially illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 6, it being understood that each article or bracing unit is initially formed from a simple flat sheet of metal such as steel. In the first stage of operation the strip of metal is subjected to a suitable punch and die operation in which the ends thereof are suitably notched to provide the spurs for the male and female members, the slots 15 are punched out and suitable portions 26 intermediate the ends are cut out along and inwardly of each marginal side thereof to define the tang 23 therebetween. After the metal has been suitably punched and notched as previously indicated, the strip or unit assumes the intermediate form shown in FIG. 5. The strip of FIG. 5 is then sent to' a second operation or stamping operation in which the embossed and depressed portions including the depressions 116, the embossed portions 18, detents 17 and .the rod-like rib portions 24 are provided, and the scoring of the tang and the offsetting thereof are accomplished providing the form shown in FIG. 6. After the stamping operation has been completed, the strip then moves to a final finishing operation in which the individual male and female members are shaped or formed to the general channeltype `cross-section contiguration previously described and bestl seen in FIG. 2. l v Since inuseithe male member ylll'is adaptedto be teiescopically received within and by the' female member e f 10,4 the dies employed inthe` final forming `operation are so constituted as to shape the male member 11` t0"a` Y slightly smaller cross-sectional size than the female member 1,0 ,to'fpermit a snug'intertting therebetween,` the center portionfZl `of the male memberbeing `slightly* narf l rower than the center portion` 4114 of the female member, and the` sides ofV the male member being correspondingly l deeper than the` sides `of the female member. f v

` This` new method of manufacture,and"`the resulting disconnectiblyHunitedlartiele of" manufacture orcrosfsbracingaunit effects a'; substantial saving in theV cost` of manufacture yover similar types `of cross-bracing whereiny the members are formed separately, and the unit or article t' of manufacture, because of theY integrally united natureiof its components,` is less expensive to wrap, pack- ,l |age and ship. `In addition, the` finished article presents a` t more convenient product totboth the rnanuiiacturer,` dis- Itributor, and user, each of the, units `comprising acornplete working unit, eliminating the inconvenience of seeki of receiving said tongue in said iirst end portion substanl '12.' A` method of 4forming a pair wood penetrating spurs, and a pair of transversely eX- tendingvdiametrically `opposed `slots tane cut 'out inter-ty Y t diedi-alte the endslof said strip leaving la narrow longitudinally extending tongue therebetween whereby said strip is divided by said slots into first and second end portions connected by said, tongue, said punching operation also including the'sformation of :atleast one opening capable ftially` midwayy between the sides thereof, subjecting the strip to a `stamping operation which includes'ernbossing said `strip toprovide 'longitudinally extending 'locking ribs on. each end portion adjacent the samel side of said,

ing out,` finding, unwrapping and Vcounting out jlequfal l number ofcooperlati-ng" mating members to assure` a suficient number ofworkingunits. It,` therefore,pcan be seen that by means of my simple butingenious invention herein disclosed` I have eifet'ed -afconsiderably lessfeX- pensivewpnoduct than has previously'been iavailable.}`

" t `It will, of course, be understood that various.` changes,` may be rnade in the form, details, arrangement and pro-f' strip,v the rib on said lirlst end portion being vcloser to' 1 saidtside, 'of said strip `than the rib on said second end i f l, portion vand facing in opposite direction therefrom, said ribs being parallel and lying on opposite sides of and 2 adjacent to a com-mon longitu-dinallyextending line, said stamping operation falso including scoring said strip transversely talong a `|line,` corresponding to the joint` between said tongue and ,rst end portion, whereby said joint may be severed by relative, pivotal movement between said `enrl portions; about vsaid weakend` joint, and subjecting the punchedand stamped stripto a forming operation which includes bending the f side portions of said end `portions fof the various partswithout departingfrom the l,

t fscopefof my invention.; ,Y c ,l

cooperating bracing;v members comprising cutting outa t pair ofltransversediametrieally opposed slots from along l v fiat striplof metal intermediate the ends thereof` and"leav-,

,inga narrow tongue-separating said slots, said `slots com-t,

t `mlunicating with'thesides of said strip, said slots .dividing` i,

` said stripintd'frst land -second'end portions whichar connected by vsaid tongue, forming at least one opening in` saidirst end portion substantially midway 'between `the sidesvthereof capable ofl receiving said ton-gue, forming Stheouter end'of,saidpstriplintowood penetratingele` ments, lforming a'plongitudinally extending rib adjacentl one 'sideof said iirst fefrid portion, forming a longitudinally 'extending rib on said second end portionadjacent the same sidefof said strip` as said iirst mentioned" rib,` 3 y said ribs bein-g inI parallel `relationship and lying on oppo l u sitevsides of and immediately adjacentto Ia commonlongitudinaily extending line, said ribs protruding from oppo site liaces of said strip for subsequent engagementwith eachother, transversely lscoring said strip Ialong the line, of juncture between said.tongue and irstend portion wherebylsaidftongue can "be severed from saidfrstelhd portion `by pivotally moving said end portions relative' to .11; method .of forming a pair of lseparablyconnected portions ,inthe samedirection and substantially normal to, theycenter portions *of*v said end .portions to thereby form Aiirst and second channel'members from said irst and second ,endl portions respectively,`said channels having saidribsjlocated on the side walls thereof, said second v v menrber beingrforme'd to fa narrower width than said l tirst memberwherebylit is capable of'bein'g telescopically l l yseated in andgenclosed by said first channel with said t 1 tongue' installed in said `side locking engagement. t Y

opening and said ribs in side by \3. A methodof forming' a pair of sepanably equal size in Van elongate flat stripof metal intermediate vthe lends thereof, said slots extending inwardly from the `sides of said strip dividing thestrip into tirst and second 1 end portions `and deiining,` therebetween VAa narrow elon-l w l gate tongue which connects `said end portions together,

transversely weakening the strip lalong the line of juncture lbetween said tongue and? first end portionI whereby the fjoint therebetween can be severed by Vrelative pivotal movementlbetween said end portions` abouty saidvweak- ,ened'jointg forming `an opening in said first end portion ,1

substantially `midway between the'sides thereoffjcapable one another about the weak joint,` lforming `said lirst` end portion into a-firstvchannellwhereby its rib is located `on` the side -walllof'said channeLand 'forming said' second end portion into a secondlchiannel which is slightlyjnar# and enclosed thereby, land whereby's'aid second named rib islocated leon. thel side wall ofr said second channel t `rower than said first named channel whereby said second l channeltcan be telescopica-Hy seated in said `rst` channel corresponding to the side wall of the first channel upon whichits rib islocated, `said rst named being closer t to the sidefedgeob ysaid strip than said seeond'named r-i-b l whereby `said first named `rib lies below `and engages said second named when said channels are in saidA telerelationship. l l

of receiving said tongue, and sllapings-aid` first and second' `end portions into vfirst and second channel memlbers`rel t .f lspeotiyely saidseclond channel member being -formed to ,al narrower width than said first channel member whereby i saidl second member can be ltelescopicailly seated in said `'tirst member with said tongue installed in said, opening.`

, OTHER` REFERENCES House andi-Ionic, December y1955, ply 188.

cf separably connected t cooperating Abracing members comprising subjecting a continuous Vlong flat metal strip to a punching operation `in whi'chbothends of said strip are notched tovprovide a connected cooperating bracing members c'omplising forming a pair l .l `of tnansverse' diametrically opposed slots of substantially" i 

3. A METHOD OF FORMING A PAIR OF SEPARABLY CONNECTED COOPERATING BRACING MEMBERS COMPRISING FORMING A PAIR OF TRANSVERSE DIAMETRICALLY OPPOSED SLOTS OF SUBSTANTIALLY EQUAL SIZE IN AN ELONGATE FLAT STRIP OF METAL INTERMEDIATE THE ENDS THEREOF, SAID SLOTS EXTENDING INWARDLY FROM THE SIDES OF SAID STRIP DIVIDING THE STRIP INTO FIRST AND SECOND END PORTIONS AND DEFINING THEREBETWEEN A NARROW ELONGATE TONGUE WHICH CONNECTS SAID END PORTIONS TOGETHER, TRANSVERSELY WEAKENING THE STRIP ALONG THE LINE OF JUNCTURE BETWEEN SAID TONGUE AND FIRST END PORTION WHEREBY THE JOINT THEREBETWEEN CAN BE SERVED BY RELATIVE PIVOTAL MOVEMENT BETWEEN SAID END PORTIONS ABOUT SAID WEAKENED JOINT, FORMING AN OPENING IN SAID FIRST END PORTION SUBSTANTIALLY MIDWAY BETWEEN THE SIDES THEREOF CAPABLE OF RECEIVING SAID TONGUE, AND SHAPING SAID FIRST AND SECOND END PORTIONS INTO FIRST AND SECOND CHANNEL MEMBERS RESPECTIVELY, SAID SECOND CHANNEL MEMBER BEING FORMED TO A NARROWER WIDTH THAN SAID FIRST CHANNEL MEMBER WHEREBY SAID SECOND MEMBER CAN BE TELESCOPICALLY SEATED IN SAID FIRST MEMBER WITH SAID TONGUE INSTALLED IN SAID OPENING. 